Top 5 Teams and Prospects: Regions 7 and 8

<!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Regular season practice has started all across the Bluegrass state and scrimmages will start in the next month. I wanted to breakdown the top 5 college prospects and the top 5 teams in each region heading into the year. This should not be considered the top 5 overall players! These are the best college prospects in each region.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong><span style="text-decoration: underline">Region 7:</span></strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Top 5 Prospects:</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Zakiyah Johnson, Sacred Heart - The biggest no brainer there could be. Johnson is a top 5-10 player in the nation and the heavy favorite to be Miss Basketball. There isn't one thing she doesn't do well on the court and Zakiyah is one of the best players to come out of Kentucky in the last decade plus.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>[player_tooltip player_id='376789' first='Ashlinn' last='James'], Assumption - James is quick and fast. She's capable of getting to the rim or knocking down threes from range. A super talented young lady, Ashlinn should have some big time games going head to head with Tootie Jordan at Sacred Heart this season.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>[player_tooltip player_id='747640' first='Amirah' last='Jordan'], Sacred Heart - Speaking of Jordan, the difference between she and Ashlinn is minimal. Both are big time talents with bright D1 futures. It's hard to differentiate between the two because they're both so good. "Tootie" will be second fiddle to Z Johnson for one more year then she'll be the main cog at SHA.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>[player_tooltip player_id='376791' first='Brianna' last='Wilkins'], Sacred Heart - Not to be overlooked at SHA, Wilkins is going to be one of the best secondary options around. Everything will run through Johnson this season for the Valkyries but Brianna should benefit big time by seeing single coverage every night.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>[player_tooltip player_id='961306' first='Alicia' last='Mangrum'], DuPont Manual - One of my favorite players I've seen in the freshman class, Mangrum is a certified bucket. She can really score the ball and has deep range past the three point line. LiLi may take a minute to add some strength to help her finish at the rim but she's a big time talent.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Top 5 Teams:</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Sacred Heart</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Assumption</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Manual</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Ballard</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Eastern</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong><span style="text-decoration: underline">Region 8:</span></strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Top 5 Prospects:</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>[player_tooltip player_id='376802' first='Madison' last='Young'], South Oldham - After averaging 19 and 9 last season, don't be surprised to see Madison posting 22 and 12 every night this season. A versatile player who can score inside, off the bounce and from three, Young continues to improve and has a very high prospect ceiling.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>[player_tooltip player_id='254281' first='Lainey' last='Johnson'], Anderson County - Lainey is one of those players whose name has been known for years and she's been a steady force for Anderson. Johnson is a heady player who excels at making the right play and she rarely (if ever) takes a play off.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>[player_tooltip player_id='494689' first='Elin' last='Logue'], Walton-Verona - A big time shooter, Logue is another name that has been playing at a high level since she was a middle schooler. Elin continues to get more comfortable attacking the rim and not settling for threes. As a result, her college stock continues to trend up. Don't be surprised if she leads the state in free throw percentage this season.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>[player_tooltip player_id='729575' first='Olivia' last='Ginn'], Grant County - After a great freshman season, the Grant County PG is ready for a breakout Sophomore campaign. Olivia has been through some battles and emerged as one of the top point guard prospects in the 2027 class in Kentucky.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>[player_tooltip player_id='739708' first='Brynli' last='Pernell'], Simon Kenton - Only a Sophomore, Pernell averaged 16 points per game last year and could be closer to 20 as a Sophomore. Brynli is trending up, long term. She shoots the ball well and is getting more comfortable attacking off the bounce. Buy stock now!</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Top 5 Teams:</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Anderson County</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Simon Kenton</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Walton-Verona</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>South Oldham</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Grant County</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph -->